LOC Docent
Draft Presentation
for qualifying tour
[Move group up North staircase and to Family and Education Room]
Please keep to the right and be careful on the steps, they are worn from use and uneven in places.
[Once situated, begin presentation]
Good morning and welcome to the Library of Congress Thomas Jefferson Building. There are many tourist destinations in Washington, DC. WE appreciate your decision to spend some of your time with us.
My name is Raymond Maxwell and I will be your docent today. After my retirement, I studied to become a librarian and I work part-time at a local university as a reference librarian.
The Library of Congress is the world’s largest libraries. We have over 162 million catalogued items, including over 38 million books, over 70 million manuscripts, 14 million photographs, over 5.5 million maps and navigation charts, 3.6 million recordings, and over 7 million pieces of sheet music.
The Library receives some 15,000 items each day, of which some 12,000 are added each day to various collections.
We are beginning the tour here in the Family and Education Corridor.
The murals you see [point to the murals] are all by Charles Pearce and depict activities of the family social unit: religion, labor, study, recreation. The painting at the east end shows a multi-generational family. It is appropriate to have a space in the library dedicated to the family because your first learning experience takes place in family settings.
Finally, on the east wall underneath “The Family” is inscribed the name of each Librarian of Congress, including the most recent one, Dr. Carla Hayden, who began her service this past September.
As we walk thru I invite you to notice the murals and paintings on the walls, to read the quotes, and to observe the artwork and iconography. The murals, sculpture and architecture of the Jefferson building exemplifies the American Renaissance style that lasted from 1876 to 1917.
The American Renaissance as an art movement sought to revive the Italian Renaissance, focusing on personification, use of the human form, symbolically and metaphorically, humanism, the study of the human being, how they move, how constructed, and how they think and interact, and skepticism, the intellectual use of their intellect, critical thinking, making sense of the world.
What made the American Renaissance different was i1) its attempt to include the best elements of previous cultures, especially indigenous and aboriginal ones and highlighting their contributions to human progress and 2) the use of classical art as a teaching tool, to teach something, to convey information, to appeal to the intellect. I’ll try to point some of these aspects our as we tour the building.
Any questions at this point?
OK, let’s proceed.
[Move group around corner to Great Hall. Hold up at TJ bust, or at GW bust, or at the water fountains]
This Commemorative Arch we are facing commemorates both the completion of the Thomas Jefferson Building in 1897, and the entrance of students and scholars (researchers) into the original entrance of the Main Reading Room. The building was originally designed in the Beaux Arts style, drawing on classic elements of Renaissance Europe’s Roman and Greek Architectural legacy. The original architects were Smithmeyer and Pelz.
The building was the first public building that included electricity in its original construction. AC current which resulted in better grounding and fewer fires from overheating, was provided by Tesla and Westinghouse. The building was lighted through out using newly invented light bulbs by Thomas Edison. This building showed that a new nation could “compete” with architectural wonders in Europe.
The embedded Statues on either side of the Commemorative Arch, called spandrels, depict “The Students,” a youth on the left side studying a book, and an elder man on the right, engaged in thought with a tablet. This symbolizes that learning is a life-long process and activity.
The Commemorative Arch, based on the arches built in ancient Rome to welcoming the emperor and returning soldiers from victory at war, welcome the learner to victory over ignorance, and to study that rewards all research.
To either side of the stairway, there are statues of lamp bearers, cousins to the Statue of Liberty in New York. They are there to light the path to learning and knowledge.
On either side there are cherubs, putti, representing learners from various trades and occupations also taking advantage of learning opportunities. They appear to be moving up at an angle, or at least in upward motion, highlighting the American Renaissance tenet that the educated worker is the true source of American wealth and power.
Examples of the putti, on the north side stairs, include a gardener, an entomologist, a student, and a painter. The putti at the stop of the staircase represent the three arts, painting, sculpture, and architecture.
Above the Thomas Jefferson bust, we have putti representing Europe and Asia, perhaps also reflecting Jefferson’s outward focus on international events. By coincidence, Jefferson is facing east, to the Reading Room.
Above the George Washington bust, we have putti representing America and Africa, perhaps reflecting his focus on domestic concerns of his day. By coincidence, Washington is facing the entrance to the Library, and west.
The zodiac on the floor is representative of the astrology craze that existed in the U.S. in the late 1800’s. Astrology replaced palm reading as the “new science” and mystical fad of the era. The presence of zodiacs throughout the building, as well as the ethnological heads on the outside, are also emblematic of Renaissance skepticism
The compass rose of embedded brass in the center floor is replicated directly overhead by six stained glass panels in the ceiling. As above, so below. The compass also works in conjunction with the lamp bearers providing direction and illumination to the learner.
[Move to the Bible Room, aka Hall of the Written Word. Hold in center/back, face east.]
To my right is the Giant Bible of Mainz. It took 15 months for one scribe to complete the whole manuscript. 1453. A very slow process that limited the number of completed Bibles at any one time. Produced on vellum (animal akin). Gifted to the LOC in 1952 by Lessing Rosenwald. The Giant Bible of Mainz marks the end of the medieval period.
To my left is the Gutenberg Bible, first book in Western Europe produced with movable metal type, also in Mainz in 1455. Vellum. Library purchased in a collection of 3000 rare books. $1/5million. Produced between 1454 and 1455. 180 produced. The Gutenberg Bible marks the beginning of the Renaissance.
And in the middle, we have a digitized version of the Gutenberg Bible. Available to an infinite number of viewers at very low cost.
[The murals]
These murals depict the evolution of the book, from cairns (a human made pile or stack of stones to remember a person or place), to the oral tradition (Arabs), to Hieroglyphs (Egypt), to picture writing, to manuscript illustration, to the invention of the metal movable press.
Any thoughts or questions?
[Move to the Main Reading Room entrance.]
These five murals by Elihu Vedder depict government, good government to the right, and bad government to the left. Legend has it they were placed at the traditional entrance to the Reading Room to remind members of Congress and staffers of their responsibility to govern wisely.
We will take a close look at one of the murals and allow you to return on your own to view the others. By the way, not really promoting it, but the gift shop has two or three very good books that cover all these murals and quotes and all the statuary in a very thorough way. One is “On These Walls” and another is Smalls Handbook of the New Library of Congress.
[Move close to the mural in the center above the doorway]
A picture is worth a thousand words. Government holds a plaque with a quote from Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address. She is seated on a throne supported by traditional voting urns, which suggests that a democratic form of government depends for its safety on the maintenance of a pure and inviolate ballot.
The bench, at each end, rests on the head of a lion with a mooring ring in its mouth, signifying that the ship of state must be moored to strength. The woman is holding a golden rod in her lap, suggesting the Golden Rule that no permanent good can accrue to a government by injuring another.
The youth to the right is holding a bridle, ready to rein in government if it becomes excessive or injurious to the common good. The youth on the left is holding a sword to defend the state and to execute justice.
[Move the group to the second floor via the Great Hall and the North Staircase.]
North Corridor.
There are a few things to call your attention to in the North Corridor. They are: the five senses, the four circular panels (knowledge, wisdom, understanding, philosophy), the rectangular athletic panels, the printer’s marks, and the virtues. The North Corridor highlights the humanism plank of Renaissance thinking
Each corridor features a specially commissioned artist. The artist for the North Corridor ceiling panels is Robert Reid. His paintings can also be found at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.
The five paintings in the ceiling vault represent the five senses, Taste, Sight, Smell, Hearing, and Touch. The five senses are the way we interact with the outside world, and play a major role in how we organize our thoughts and how we learn. Taste is shown drinking from a gourd, Sight is looking at her reflection in a mirror, Smell is seated among Flowers, Hearing holds a seashell up to her ear, and Touch shows a butterfly that has landed on her arm.
Between each of the five senses, there is a panel depicting athletic activity, a further suggestion that it is not sufficient to read books and do rote memorization of facts, that learning requires both engagement with the senses and maintaining a healthy physique. Also, the humanism aspects of human construction and interaction. The athletic panels are by Frederic Martin.
The four circular panels on the north wall are entitled Wisdom, Knowledge, Understanding, Philosophy. Each is accompanied by an appropriate quote. Quotations, by the way, appear throughout the building’s walls. They were selected by the then librarian, Ainsworth Spofford, and by the then president of Harvard University, Charles William Eliot. Also, between the printer marks, are excerpts from Adelaide Proctor’s poem, Unexpressed.
[Continue around the mezzanine to the West Corridor, stopping at the location of the former Bacon Shrine.]
[My back to the window, facing the group.]
A bit of history.
Out this window, you can see the U.S. Capitol. The Library of Congress was established in the U.S. Capitol Building in 1800, with an appropriation of $5k. By 1802, the Library had amassed 964 books and 9 maps. By 1812, the collection had increased to 3,076 volumes and 53 maps and charts.
In 1813, American forces captured York (Toronto) and set fire to the parliament building, burning a small legislative library.
In 1814, The Brits retaliated, captured Washington, and set fire to the Capitol and the White House. The Library of Congress and all its books and artifacts were destroyed.
To replenish the library collection, former president Jefferson offered to sell his personal library of 6487 catalogued volumes. After some debate in Congress, his offer was accepted and he was paid $23,950.
In some respects, Jefferson was twice the founder of the LOC. First, as president, he advocated strongly on behalf of the original 1800 library funding. Then in 1814, he provided his personal collection to re-seed the library’s holdings.
By 1850, the library had grown to over 55,000 volumes. A fire in the building in 1851 destroyed some 20,000 volumes, including 2/3’s of the original Jefferson collection.
In the next three years, over $167,000 was appropriated for building repairs and book purchases. By 1861, the collection had grown to over 70,000 volumes, though purchases and donations.
In 1871, copyright registrations and deposits were centralized at the LOC. The library’s holdings increased dramatically, overflowing the its assigned space and filling up several spaces within the capitol bldg. In 1886, Congress approved the construction of a new building. By 1891, the collection had grown to over 650,000 volumes. the library was relocated to the new Jefferson Building in 1897.
OK, back to the West Corridor.
The Bacon Shrine, located to align exactly with the Minerva mosaic in the East Corridor, held the original Constitution and the Declaration of Independence until both were removed to NARA when it began operations in 1934.
The eight rectangular panels in the corridor by Walter Shirlaw represent the sciences. This corridor is also known as the Science Corridor and corresponds most closely to the Skepticism plank of Renaissance. The three arts in the ceiling, by William Van Inge, architecture, painting and sculpture, represent the harmonization of the three arts that was a hallmark of both the Beaux Arts movement and the American Renaissance.
[Move the group to the South Corridor.]
The South Corridor features Benson’s Four Seasons and Three Graces. The three graces harken back to Greek mythology and the personifications of beauty, charm and grace. What strikes me about the Four Seasons is the absence of symbolism in the paintings that might real the seasons themselves. The observer is left to decide on his own. Similarly, the three graces appear interchangeable and non-distinguished. The South Corridor most closely corresponds to Renaissance personification.
[Move the group to the East Corridor.]
As the West Corridor brought to mind the Sciences, the East Corridor reminds us of Literature in all its various types.
In the center vault, we see the Life of Man, by William McKay, in its three ages: youth, midlife, and old age. The different genres of literature, eight panels, are by Randolph Barse.
Finally, the mosaic of Minerva, the Minerva of Peace and culture and civilization, of Wisdom, the Patroness of American Liberty. The Minerva Mosaic, an Elihu Vedder creation, was built in Italy and shipped to the US for installation at the LOC. The mosaic is 15.5 feet tall and 9 feet wide.
Minerva’s spear is pointed to the ground, but she is still holding it. Her helmet and shield are laying on the ground to her side, but at the ready to defend.
Above, the clouds are parting. The clouds of disaster, discouragement and ignorance. She is accompanied by her spirit creature, the owl, whose neck rotates for a 360-degree perspective. She is also accompanied by Nike, the Greek symbol of victory, tying her to her Greek predecessor, Athena, symbolizing success in battle.
The mosaic is surrounded by a laurel tree displayed as a vine, a rhizome, symbolizing the decentralized nature of learning and information and civilization. She holds a scroll, unfurled at the top to signify, perhaps, hidden ancient sources of wisdom and learning, and unfurled at the bottom, suggesting future disciplines of learning and knowledge yet discovered.
“Not unwilling, Minerva raises a monument more lasting than bronze.”
[Hold up at the print of the Blashfield collar mural.]
At the top of the Reading Room dome a female figure is painted inside the domed ceiling, “The Human Understanding.”
In a fitting phrase by Francis Bacon we have the following quote:
“The human understanding is like a false mirror, which, receiving rays irregularly, distorts and discolors the nature of things by mingling its own nature with it”
She is shown lifting her own veil and looking upward from the collar mural below, The Evolution of Civilization, also called Finite Intellectual Achievement. Two cherubs accompany her, perhaps two of the putti from the Great Hall below who have ascended. One carries a book, and one, by his hand gestures, seems to be beckoning to us below.
[Move up the stairs to the observation platform.]
In the collar mural are twelve figures symbolizing countries, civilizations or epochs that have contributed to civilization: Egypt (Written Records), Judea (Religion), Greece (Philosophy); Rome (Administration); Islam (Physics), The Middle Ages (Modern Languages), Italy (Fine Arts), Germany (Printing), Spain (Discovery), England (Literature), France (Emancipation), and America (Science).
The collar also represents a compass, with cardinal headings represented by Egypt, Rome, Italy, and England. Immediately below the collar mural are eight semi-circular stained glass windows containing the seals of the states.
The first level of statues consists of plaster female statues of representative fields of learning, Art, History, Commerce, Religion, Science, Law, Poetry, and Philosophy. And immediately below are bronze portrait statues (two each) of persons associated with the fields of learning. Here is a table:
| Plaster statues | sculptor | object | Bronze statue |
| RELIGION | Theodore Baur | flower | Moses, St. Paul |
| COMMERCE | John Flanagan | olive, ship. train | Columbus, Fulton |
| HISTORY | Daniel French | book, mirror | Herodotus, Gibbon |
| ART | August Saint-Gaudens | Parthenon, mallet, pallet, brush, nude | Michelangelo, Beethoven |
| PHILOSOPHY | Bela Pratt | book | Plato, Bacon |
| POETRY | JQA Ward | heavy line garment | Homer, Shakespeare |
| LAW | Paul Bartlett | scroll, tablet, head cover | Solon, Kent |
| SCIENCE | John Donoghue | globe, mirror held forward | Newton and Joseph Henry |
[Moving back to the East Corridor and over to the railing.]
The six panels in the ceiling reflect the compass rose in the floor of the Great Hall. Compasses provide direction. The compass rose in the floor directs you through the library. The compass panels in the ceiling direct you through the higher regions of information.
What appears to be silver in the ceiling is actually aluminum. Aluminum was as expensive as gold in the 1880’s. But in the 1890’s, an American and a French scientist independently discovered how to use electrolysis to extract aluminum from bauxite, lowering the cost substantially. This was one of the factors that resulted in the Building coming in under cost.
Might be time for a change here 